September 2007
Community Paper
copyright ©2007 by Community Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.


From the Desk of City Commissioner Robert Stuart

Dear College Park Neighbors,

In a few weeks, Summer will be "officially" over and we'll be back into the busy schedule of Autumn. School has already begun - Edgewater High School has already played their first game - and before you know it, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas will be upon us!

As we reflect on the summer, let me express my thanks to everyone who helped make and keep our College Park community a safe neighborhood. Our Neighborhood Watch organizations have continued to meet and we are seeing great progress in crime prevention throughout College Park and all of District 3. Neighborhood Watch is your involvement in preventing crime and creating a safer community. If you're not involved, please contact my office and we'll help you start your own Watch Group.
Speaking of Neighborhood Watch, let me express my thanks to our neighbors for the great turnout as part of the National Night Out on August 7. District 3 hosted nine neighborhood parties and College Park hosted four! My special thanks to Samantha Colon (Brandywine East), Patti Riva (Dubsdread), Jennifer Spell (Ardsley Manor/Radclyffe Terrace), and Craig O‚Neil (Maury Road/Palomar) for their efforts in coordinating our best parties yet! (SEE PICTURES.) Keep up the great work - as McGruff, the Crime Dog says, "Let's take a bite out of crime!"

As we near the end of our city's fiscal year, we are busy at City Hall and around District 3. As you will remember, our governor, Charlie Crist, declared a special session of the Florida Legislature to address the rising costs associated with property taxes throughout Florida.

While I was hoping for a more permanent and long-term solution, they successfully rolled back the value assessed for property and effectively capped the local millage rates of our cities and counties. After much review by Orange County Property Appraiser Bill Donegan and our city's Director of Finance, Rebecca Sutton, and her professional staff, it appears that the City of Orlando fared well in the property tax debate and there will be a limited effect on next year's budget. This doesn't mean that we aren't cutting taxes. At the recommendation of the Mayor, the City Council has tentatively approved a property tax millage rate cut of 13.4% to a rate of 4.9307. With the increase of new growth in the City of Orlando, we are projecting budget revenues equal to or slightly less than the 2006/07 fiscal year.

At the Mayor's recommendation, we will continue into next year with four major thrusts. First, we will maintain the commitment to the 3-year Public Safety Initiative that began last year. It appears that we will be able to hire 25 more police officers, on schedule, to make sure that each citizen and visitor to our Great City is safe! Second, we will deliver the core services to our citizens, maintaining the quality of life that we all enjoy. Third, each department will continue so search out ways that they can be more efficient, spending your tax dollars wisely. And last, Orlando will go Green! Our renewed commitment to environmentally sound operations and buildings will reap benefits for years to come.

Your City Council will review the proposed revenue projections of Orlando and critique the expense forecasts of our extensive budget. On September 10 and September 17, we will hold our annual public hearings of the proposed 2007-08 Budget. I would encourage each citizen keep abreast of our deliberations and share your thoughts with me personally as we look toward making our city more efficient.

As we get back into the daily routine of life, please take some time to enjoy your family by visiting one of our city-owned parks. You can find out more about each park, their amenities, and location by going to Orlando's Parks and Recreation web site (http://www.cityoforlando.net/fpr/net/Index.aspx ). Just last week, we re-dedicated the Princeton Park, on Rugby just north of Princeton Elementary School, adjacent to our College Park Community Center and Pool. We are excited about this great new amenity in College Park and hope that you will enjoy the playground with your family and friends.

It is an honor to serve you and the citizens of our Great City. Please join me as we work to make College Park, District 3, and the City of Orlando a great place to work, live and play.

Robert

Robert F. Stuart, District 3 City Commissioner
400 S. Orange Avenue, Orlando, FL 32801
Phone: 407-246-2003; e-mail Robert.Stuart@cityoforlando.net
or check out Orlando's website (www.cityoforlando.net)